


The Fate of the Last Born

by Charmieleon



Category: Call Me By Your Name (2017) RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1920s, Crossdressing, Family Secrets, M/M, Secret Identity, Teenage Drama
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-07
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-25 00:33:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21347341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Charmieleon/pseuds/Charmieleon
Summary: In some places, the last-born female child has the responsibility of caring for her aging parents, ultimogeniture. What is a mother capable of doing to protect her last surviving son and herself?
Relationships: Timothée Chalamet/Armie Hammer
Comments: 2
Kudos: 19





	1. Le Chambon

**Author's Note:**

> The tradition of the duty of the last born and the recent EW November photo shoot and Timmy’s unique power to pull male/female looks so effortlessly inspired this fic. 
> 
> This is my first Fic ever, as well as my first online English publication. I’m not a native English speaker and I apologize ahead for my mistakes.
> 
> I’m still not sure how this story will develop, nor how it will end. 
> 
> This is my plot but not my characters. The story is 100% fiction in an AU post WW1.
> 
> Here is the 1st Chapter, short and straight to the point. I really hope I was able to start showing you how the characters will develop and their respective personalities. 
> 
> Please let me know what you think and if you like it!

Although we looked like everyone else, we were an atypical family in our hometown in the South of France. Papa was a Frenchman, through and through. Mom, a secretive American that no one was quite sure how ended up in the Old Continent. I was the youngest in our family, preceded only by my sister. We were born, raised and lived in Father’s state in a small village where everyone knew us, and many shared our last name.

Papa was the oldest son in his family and the heir to his father’s state. There were no titles, those sorts of things were in the past; there was old money, heritage and tradition. This made me the one responsible for carrying on with our family name and legacy. It didn’t matter that I was the youngest, all that mattered was that I was the only other man after Papa. I didn’t mind being that person, because I was proud of our name and of our family. What I did mind, and wasn’t looking forward to, was having all eyes on me, being the future catch for everyone within the vicinity, related or not. As young as I was, this was already happening. 

Historically, our family lived off the land we’ve owned for eons. Papa had a curious mind, great instincts and didn’t want to settle for the same, times had already dramatically changed; he wanted to expand and explore new business ventures, for him, for us and for the Chambon. Papa was like most of the Chambonnais and the sense of duty to help ran deep in him, he wanted to make our hometown great, prosperous and bring new sources of income. He was an educated man, thus his love for books, anything written or printed ignited his passion. In his last days he was an editor and ran a big printing house from the Commune. Later I would discover that I felt the same, that reading was my scape and writing was the only way I had to keep him, my sister and my true self alive somewhere, even if only in white paper and black ink. 

Our village lies amid the forests and pastures deep within France’s geography, surrounded by green hills covered by thick lines of tall centennial pine-trees. Everyone referred to it as a secluded hidden place perfect for hiding, which will prove useful and life-saving in the years to come. It was not an easy place to get in, nor to get out of.

My life was about to change but I couldn’t fathom the turn of events. I was almost fifteen that afternoon when it happened and the wheels started to move. I was home doing schoolwork and getting ready to go to the printshop to help close for the day. I loved going there each day, the smells, the sounds, the people, putting my black apron on, getting my hands and my face smeared with ink; the perks of having fidgety fingers and long untamed hair! 

Papa and my sister had left earlier to Mars to meet some local authority. Pauli was eighteen, beautiful, incredibly smart and no longer a girl. We looked very much alike and both resembled Mom. To that day, we had only seen a couple of pictures of Mom’s siblings and we definitely took from that side of the family. Paulie and I had the same hazel eyes, same sad gaze, chiseled faces and skin that made our freckles visibly dark. Only our demeanor and our hair were different, my head was full of dark auburn curls and hers covered in honey toned long locks that rested bellow her shoulders and brushed the cleavage of all of her dresses. I was a coltish, hasty boy and she was serious-minded woman. I still had some growing to do, but I was unassumingly a younger version of her.

It was getting late and Mom and I were starting to worry. The roads to the Chambon during the fall were slick and dark. Uneasiness will start turning into fear, unless the telephone rang to let us know that they would stay down in Mars, which would have been very unusual. Around 10 at night we were waiting in the middle of our living room; Mom was reading in front of the fireplace, I was standing on the opposite side of the hearth looking at the fire, forearms above the mantel and my head tucked between them. As always, Mom was serene and expectant. She was a woman of action that did not like to be disturbed by things she could not control.

“Mom, something happened, this is not normal” I told her, desperate to do something, to at least talk about what was occurring.

“Timmy, my darling, let’s wait a bit longer, there is not much we can do now, we don’t know where they are. It is pitch dark and foggy outside, even if we go the gendarmerie no one will get very far in this weather.”

My eyes were fixed at the little table besides Mom, waiting for the telephone to ring when we heard the doorbell instead. It was a deafening sound against the sepulchral silence covering our house that night. Charles rushed from the kitchen to open the door and welcome our visitors, but I was closer and signaled him to stop; I would open it for them. He stood right where I asked him to stop, as expectant as I was seeing the tiredness in his face change to anguish.

Our door had glass panels encased in the wood, covered by a lacy little screen. I froze at the sight of what was at the other side; we were just talking about them and they just showed-up at our door. I couldn’t-t do anything else but open.

“Bonsoir Timothée, pouvons-nous entrer?” Asked the gendarmes. 

It was the Police Captain and a Deputy, I’ve known the Captain my entire life but I didn’t recognize the Deputy, he was young and looked frightened. The Captain served during the Great War and he liked to practice his English with us, he was fond of les Américains and of us and he enjoyed telling us his tales of fighting alongside the allies. 

“Bien sûr Capitaine.” I finished opening the ajar door to let him in into the hall. 

“Bonsoir madame, good evening madam.” he pronounced with the thickest accent possible. 

Mom lifted her head, closed her book and got up from the chair, walked a few steps and extended her arm to greet the officer. Very American of her and she loved it, it made everyone stop before her. He was used to her doing that instead of the customary kisses on the cheeks.

“Good evening Alain, please come in. Do you have news from Marc and Paulie?”

“Oui madam” his voice was toneless and I was baffled, I’ve never seen him or heard him being so stoic. 

“Please come in and have a seat so you can tell us where they are.”

He just moved a foot but couldn’t proceed to the sofa. 

“I am afraid …” 

He stopped when we saw me take my hands to my mouth and heard me gasp. 

Nothing that begins with I am afraid is bound to have a good outcome. Something bad had happened and all we could do was hope and start praying.

“I’m afraid we bring bad news. We have not been able to go there to confirm, but there has been a fatal crash closer to Mars than here. The local gendarmes called us and it looks like it was the car of Monsieur Marc.”

Mom’s face didn’t even flinch, she just lifted her arm beckoning me to go under it, like a hen does with her chicks. I could no longer stand under her arms; I was taller than her. She held my waist placing her hand on my back and pushing my face against her shoulder. I could not stop the sobs, my eyes filled with tears that almost immediately started running down my cheeks onto my mother’s dress and I couldn’t care less that the officers saw me cry like that. Someone was in our house and he was telling us that Papa and Paulie were gone.

“How is that possible Captain, Marc and Paulie are known in Mars, the car has plates why can’t they tell?” She raised her voice out of frustration. Knowing her, she was already trying to figure out all of the variables required to solve that puzzle. 

“There was a fire Madam. Half of everything is scorched beyond simple recognition. The rain stopped it, but it was too late. We need to wait until the morning to go there and bring what was collected for us to examine, and later for you to identify.”

Without letting go of me, Mom extender her right arm and shaking the Captain’s hands uttered the most formal goodbye. 

“Merci Captain, please call me tomorrow when you have more concrete news and I will go down to the station. Have a good night.”

“I’m really sorry Madam, Timothée. I will let you know as soon as we know more. I promise.”

“Charles, please show the Captain out and you can return to your room for the evening. Merci.”

When we were left alone Mom finally spoke. 

“Timmy my darling, we will be fine, we will be fine, you and I, we will be fine!”


	2. Confirmation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2, is about the characters, knowing how they interact and how they think. Since it is fan fiction, I tried to incorporate some traits of the RP and I mixed them with literary liberties.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like the first part of this chapter should have been the last part of the first, but I was really eager to start publishing it and I uploaded it sort of unfinished, so my apologies for the rush and for making this one so long. You will see the break and this note will make more sense. Probably when I finish the fic, I’ll edit Chapter 1.

I woke up startled in my room later that night, I had no recollection of how I got up there._ I knew it was my room because of the smell_. All of our house smelled like lavender, Mom’s favorite scent, but my room had a hint of a mix of Guerlain, sweat and acetone. First thing I noticed was how tight my eyelids felt, stock together by ground and puffiness, I only managed to open a sliver to confirm where I was. Everything hurt, my head, my face, my throat. Memories started flooding my mind immediately as I started seating on my elbows trying to separate myself from the mattress; they felt like a million pounds and pushed my back on my pillows.

I lifted my hands to my face stopping when my knuckles reached the hairline. I pulled and pulled in a desperate attempt to swipe my hurt with the pain in my scalp. Horrible images of Papa and Paulie came flashing behind my closed lids, _shock, pain, screams, heat, smoke_. We didn’t know what had happened yet, but I’ve read enough about things like this from my books and the papers; crashes and fires were still too recent after the Great War. I couldn’t cry, tears did not build in my eyes, only anger that pushed a loud scream from my chest. I yelled to the top of my lungs until there was no air left in me, my heart was breaking and the reverberation of my screams was helping me finish the job.

In a matter of what seemed to be only seconds, the door swung open, no knock, no _may I come in or excusez moi_, just the loud thud of the heavy wooden panel hitting the wall behind it. Mom came barging in, I could recognize her stride anywhere. I had developed a keen sense of hearing, I needed it to hear them coming before I could get caught in one of my mischiefs. She was the only person left in the house that night that could come that quickly, our rooms where on the same floor one in front of the other.

She rushed to my bed and stood looking down on me, taking in my misery. She needed to stop the harm I was inflicting on myself, but she would never be so direct to simply tell me to let go.

“Timmy, my angel, I’m here, let me hold your hands dear.”

She sat next to me, reached her right arm underneath my armpit and helped me sat up. Inevitably I let go of my hair and used my hands to help me lift myself up and crossed my legs in front of me.

I looked at her in the twilight of my room, her green eyes like mirrors. I could see myself and Paulie in them, which filled me with terror and concern.

“Please tell me it is not true, tell me they’ll come back.” I couldn’t help raising my voice.

“Darling you know I cannot lie, not to you. Alain came, but we still don’t know what happened. We need to gather ourselves and wait for the light of day.” She kept holding my hands in a tight grip.

The dreadful images started changing for the captain’s face uttering those ominous words. They resonated in my ears, coming one by one as if I was to quote them in a book. Nothing was certain, but the balance remained tilted to one side when he mentioned the suspicions of _Papa´s voiture_. How could I tether my brain to remain neutral, expecting? It was impossible, at least to my fifteen-year-old self.

“Mon, how can you be so calm! How are you so serene. I don’t understand, don’t you care?”

I was trying really hard to hold myself, to not curse, I wasn’t only talking to my mother, but a lady as well. Father taught me that a gentleman was never to say expletives in the presence of a lady. Even in the state that I was, I needed to abide by that lesson, I couldn’t start acting as if he wasn’t there any longer.

“You are upset my sweet baby and I’m going to pretend you didn’t pronounce those spiteful words. I’m going to help you get out of those day clothes and into your pajamas. You will be more conformable; it is still very early and you need to rest.”

I wished she would have scolded me, asked me _what are you thinking?_ or at least warned _me never speak to me like that again_, but her voice remained precise and swoon, successfully making me question my own desperation. Mom exercised patience and restrain with the discipline of a monk.

“I’m sorry Mom, I didn’t mean it. I just need this to be a misunderstanding, believe that Pauli and Papa will join us later for lunch telling us how it got too late and they decided to stay the night in Mars. Mom, we cannot live without them!”

_I couldn’t tell her that I couldn’t go on living without them_; I couldn’t tell her that, it would have been cruel and careless. They were everything to me, Pauli was my friend and coconspirator and Papa was my role model, the man I wished to be. Mom was important but realistically speaking she already taught me everything I needed to learn from her. I would love and cherish her until her last day, but I didn’t need her, she was going to be more useful to Paulie than I.

“I’ll go find your pajamas, while you start with your clothes, is that alright?”

“Thank you. I can take it from here, don’t worry about it.”

“I can still help you or have you grown shy now? There is nothing I haven’t seen before under those clothes; don’t forget I gave birth to you.”

“Mom please, I’m a grown up now.”

“Oohh no my baby, you are not! I’ll leave you to it for now. I’ll come wake you up tomorrow so you can get ready for your lessons. Clear your mind, close your eyes and rest.”

She kissed my forehand and left.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up before Mom came to wake me up. It was a cold, dry morning with no clouds hovering above. I got up, changed and waited looking out the window to the road that led to our home. I wasn’t sure if I could carry on with my day-to-day activities, knowing that in a matter of hours, we would receive confirmation of Papa and Pauli’s whereabouts.

Mom knocked on my door a few minutes before seven o’clock.

“Timmy, are you awake?”

“Yes Mom, you can come in.”

“Thank you, angel. You woke up early, come and join me for breakfast before Édouard arrives.”

Our house had three stories, stone walls and a red-tiled roof with a couple of chimney towers. From the outside, the symmetrically aligned windows framed in the same colors as the roof made the structure look like a perfectly even grid, it was a geometric dream for Papa and an eye-sore for Mom. I had an in-between opinion about it, I loved how high it sat on the hill with a forest backdrop, and how the straight and perpendicular lines were complimented by round pruned pines and bushes in the front. Since _I didn’t care for architectural standards or the aesthetically pleasing French provincial look_, I could understand both of my parents’ sentiments for our house.

Our rooms were on the third floor, away from the noise of the kitchen, the sheds and the living rooms. On the second floor, sandwiched between the bedrooms and the entrance, was our library, Papa´s office, Mom´s study and an extra room. Once we turned twelve and stopped going to school with the other Chambonnais children, Pauli and I took our lessons in the library, while Mom waited for us drawing, reading or knitting in her study. Papa used his office when he stayed home and during weekends when he needed to pay attention to something urgent. The kitchen, the dining room, the living room, a vestibule, another study and a couple of extra bedrooms were at ground level.

We went downstairs to the dining room and had the saddest breakfasts I have had until that moment in my life. Everyone had long, desolate faces; Mom’s eyes were dark, mine bloodshot and Charles couldn’t keep his gaze for more than a second. We took our usual seats and in between us the two empty chairs that belong to Papa and Paulie; Mom and Paulie sat next to Papa and I next to my sister. Charles brought the usual dishes filled with bread and pastries and the jars of jam. We barely ate and mostly drank our tea and coffee looking at the liquids steaming away in our cups. Someone needed to say something to break the silence, after last night I didn’t want to venture, I knew I couldn’t say anything helpful.

Mom was the one that took a deep breath and started talking.

“Édouard will be here any minute now. If Alain comes or calls me while you are taking your lessons, I will not interrupt. If he comes after you are done, you can be with me. But there is one condition.”

“Mom, even if I’m in the middle of a lesson, I would like to know! it will not make any difference, you know? I don’t think I’d be able to make much progress today anyways.”

“Aren’t you ignoring something? What if it is Papa the one that comes or calls?” I paused trying to breath, but my words escaped my lips faster than my brain could stop them.

If words could be savored, mine had a bile-bitter taste. Mom understood my meaning immediately, took a deep breath in, then a loud one out and remained silent. She had decided not to speak to me until I decided to act civil and I also caught her meaning as fast as her.

I lowered my voice and my tone and asked. “Excuse me Mom, what is it that you want to ask me?”

“My dearest, I’m not ignoring anything, please don’t say those things. Whatever happens I need you to support me, to be strong and help me today, it is just going to be the two of us facing this. Can you do it?”

_Was my mother asking me for what anyone may identify as moral support_. It was the first time I heard Mother saying something like this. She was never shy of asking for help, but it was always limited to the physicality and strengths her tiny body lacked. She was the tough one amongst us, the practical solver. I couldn’t rub this on her face as well. I understood that I was acting like a resentful brat and that my attitude wasn’t going to help either of us, not now, not in the future.

“Of course, I will do it Mom.”

“Thank you darling. Charles, you can clear the table. Timmy will go to the library and I’ll stay in the living room this morning. _Merci_.” She looked at me, thanking me without saying the words.

As I was halfway up the stairs, we heard the doorbell. Édouard had arrived and was standing outside, I didn’t care for opening to him and continued upstairs. I wasn’t in the mood for our usual effervescent morning greetings. Charles would open the door for him and send him up to the library.

_“Bonjour Charles, où est Timothée?”_

_“Bonjour il est dans la bibliothèque monsieur.”_

_“Merci Charles”_

I left the door of the library open, as a sign to enter without any further delays. I couldn’t make for the details of the conversation between the two men, I only knew it was an extremely short exchange. If Charles was one thing, he was a discrete person, during his work hours he talked only when he was spoken to. During off hours, he was pretty much the same, except with Papa. He was a constant in Papa’s life, through the years they became friends, and Papa always asked for his advice. Charles wasn’t elderly, he was married and lived with his wife in the little house next to ours, no children and no grandchildren. His wife no longer worked, but we could find her every day in our kitchen, the coup or the garden helping with what she could.

I took my seat in the round table in the middle of the library and waited for Édouard. I knew he was going to ask me why I didn’t open the door for him. I was trying to think of what I was going to tell him. Should I tell him what was happening? Had the news spread like gossip already? He has been my tutor for the past 3 years and Paulie’s before me,_ I could confide in him_.

“Good morning Timothée, is everything alright, why didn’t I find you downstairs?” He said when he entered the room.

It was obvious that he was going to ask, I wanted him to ask me. I always greeted him downstairs and couldn’t wait to start telling him about the day before or asking him questions about the assignments he had left me. I was sad today, I needed to talk to someone about this.

“Did you hear anything while coming here?” I darted instantly without looking up.

He moved towards the table and as he was grabbing the chair in front of me to take a seat he said. “Did whatever you are asking about killed your manners Timothée?”

_How dared him speak to me like that!_

“No, but it might have killed Papa and Paulie, those will be the real victims!”

He couldn’t move after he heard my sister’s name. It was an awful thing to say to him, I was daring, mocking and humiliating him at the same time. _Merde! how could I keep saying these horrible things, don’t I have any sorts of constraints. How could I want everyone around me to feel as miserable as I did?_

“Oh, dear Lord! what are you saying child?”

Words left my mouth like a deluge. “I’m sorry I said that. Papa and Paulie went to Mars yesterday and never came back. Alain Showed up late last night, told us they might have been involved in a crash-and-burn accident on the road coming here, but that they needed to go there today to confirm. We still have not heard back from him.”

“My dear boy I can’t believe this! Nothing is certain until Alain comes back with his findings, we need to wait for him. Oh, my god!”

“Édouard, Alain said the Mars gendarmes told him it was _la voiture de Papa_.”

“It doesn’t matter what they told him, nothing is certain yet, there is still hope, don’t worry.” He said.

Is everyone for real? Alain was the only one that said things truthfully. I was getting tired of having the people around me downplay what was happening. Did they want to spare me a day of suffering? were they afraid I could not handle this? I am not a baby!

I wasn’t sure if I said those things out loud or if could read my mind. Him, and everyone else, told me that they knew what I was thinking just by looking at me; that my eyes and my body shouted unspoken words louder than the tip of my tongue.

“Tim, there is nothing anyone can do until we know for certain. There is no need to drown yourself in sorrow ahead of time.”

“We are talking about my father and my sister, we don’t even know where they are, dammit!” Yelling and hitting the table with closed fists.

“Tim stand-up!”

“No!”

“Stand-up now! I will not repeat myself.”

Now I wasn’t sure who was more upset, but I listened to him and did was he asked. He never sat down, he remained crouching over the table. When I stood up, he lifted himself as well and took a step closer.

“Listen to me, I know this is especially hard to do right now, but you have to listen to me and not say another word. We are going to go outside and take a walk in the woods behind your house, if you want to yell, or hit me, you can do it there. You don’t want to upset your household; do you understand me?”

“Oui Édouard, I do. What about my lesson?”

“Timothée there are lessons that can only be learned outside the pages of the books and of the four walls of a room, _allez_!”

We walked out of the library, down the stairs and out of the house. My Mother’s eyes following us out until we closed the door behind us. it was still very early, 10 minutes past the 9th hour. We circled the house and entered the pine forest that covered most of the hill where my house stood. I wasn’t angry anymore; the adrenaline rush had gone away allowing me to think about what Édouard mentioned minutes ago. I could never lift a hand against him, he was my teacher, my friend, I felt nothing but respect and appreciation for him. Besides, he was bigger than me and I couldn’t throw a punch to save my life. If there was still anything close to aristocracy in France, our family could have easily been noble, and noblemen don’t fist-fight.

We talked about what we knew up until that moment, the possible outcomes, my feelings and fears. He wanted me to know that it was alright to be afraid, especially when the only thing ahead was uncertainty.

“Timothée, fear is a driver, no matter where it leads us it always pushes us somewhere. What we have to do is face it, breath a second a visualize the paths that fear opens in front of us. Sometimes these might be of our choosing or other times these might be forced. But we always have to fight fear for a second, allow ourselves a moment of clarity to be able to see the next step we are going to take. A bad decision made in fear can destroy us. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“I think I do, but fear is a powerful blinding force.” I told him.

“It is, but our will is stronger, you just have to know and believe that! We are the only living creatures on this earth gifted with free will, it is that will what makes us unique and allows us to control our lives. If you don’t take the reins of your will then you are simple the horse and not the horseman.”

We walked and talked for almost two hours. We started to head back to the house when we both felt hungry. When I was halfway through the backyard, I noticed the patrol car parked in front of the house. I started to run to the door as fast as I could and rang the bell like a manic so Charles would open as fast as possible.

I didn’t know who opened the door or where I had left Édouard. When I got to the living room, I stood still and noticed Alain saying goodbye to Mom, he walked my way and placed a hand on my shoulder.

“_Je suis désolé_.”

For the second time in a day, as Alain walked out of my house, my eyes filled with tears.

That was it, three words marked the end of the lives of the most important people in my existence. My knees buckled and I fell to the floor. I couldn’t stop, nor muffled my sobs. _They are gone, they died a horrible death, I couldn’t say goodbye_.

Immediately I felt someone lifting me up, grabbing my arm and throwing it around his shoulders.

“Let’s take him to the studio please” said my Mother.

I was placed on the studio sofa and all I could do was hold my legs up, bury my face in my knees and cry. I cried until my sobs difficulted my breathing. I wasn’t sure how long I was like that, but I knew I wasn’t alone.

“Mom, how it happened, what did Alain tell you?”

“Timmy my sweet angel, it was quick and before the fire.”

“What are we going to do now Mom?”

She stood up from the chair in front of the sofa, walked around the coffee table, sat next to me and started stroking my hair, moving her fingers back and forth. I lifted my head and I saw her crying; silent tears ran down her cheeks one after the other. She had a small handkerchief and she ran it over her jaw not to let the tears reach her dress. She was wearing a pristine white dress and the tears mixed with diluted make-up would have stained the fabric beyond repair.

I wiped my eyes with my hand and put my arm around her shoulder. I knew that from that day on I needed to care for and comfort her, I was the only person she had left in the world. Her American family was on the other side of the Atlantic and my French family was forced to care because she married Papa._ I had made her a promise and I was going to keep it_. Papa would have wanted me to be strong for her and for our home. There was nothing I needed to wait for any longer, we knew they were dead. The paths Édouard told me about were in front of me and I needed to pick one.

“Mom, we will be alright, I promise. What did Alain say we need to do now?”

“My baby, my sweet angel! I think he said he’d call to let us know when to go to the mortuary to identify some of their things. We would need to arrange for the funerals and talk to the priest and the family. Charles can help us, he’ll know what to do, he took care of your grandparents.”

“Mom, we will go together when Alain calls and I’ll talk to Charles. Do I ask Marie to bring you some chamomile tea?”

“Thanks Timmy, you go arrange things with Charles and I’ll go to the kitchen myself. I have to let the ladies know personally.”

I kissed Mom’s forehead, stood up and took a deep breath, the following days were going to be hectic and I needed to get up to speed as fast as I could. I need to talk to Papa’s attorney, go to the printing house, to the bank, write letters, send telegrams. I would ask Mom to call my aunts and uncle. I will see them during the funerals, so family was not on my list of priorities. I thanked the fact that all of this was going to keep me busy, some days will go by before I had to deal with what I feared the most, their absence.

I followed Mom out of the studio and I found Charles just outside the door. I asked him to come in because I needed to speak to him. We sat down on the table; he gave me his condolences because he already knew, he actually knew more than I did, he was there when Alain talked to my mother. I thanked him and gave him my condolences; Papa was like a son to him and Paulie was his little girl. If anyone was going to feel their passing, it was going to be Charles. I requested his advice regarding the funeral arrangements and he said he was going to take care of them, the same way he had done with my grandparents. Since he was going downtown, I told him to come find me here before he left. I needed to draft a quick note to Papa’s lawyer asking him to deal with me from now on and to come to the house tonight, Charles would drop it on his way to the funeral house.

Once Charles left,_ I was wondering what had happened with Édouard_. 

Now I needed to head out to the print house and let everyone know what had happened. With the help of the attorney and my uncle we could take care of the other businesses. But the printshop was where I spent almost all of my afternoons, so it was my responsibility to let them know.

Later that afternoon I came back home and there were several cars parked outside, including a police patrol. There were men smoking outside, some known, some not so much. All of them gave me their condolences as I walked inside my house. Charles opened the door, he told me to go to the Library, that Mother and Gilles, Papa’s attorney, were expecting me. Taking a quick look inside the living room I saw Captain Alain talking to my uncle and one of my aunts crying holding on to Marie’s skirt.

I knocked on the library’s door and Gilles opened it for me. He stood for a moment, reached out a hand holding mine and pulled me to an embrace. “_Prenant part à votre douleur, je vous présente mes sincères condoléances, à vous et à votre famille Timothée_.”

“_Merci Gilles_. Charles told me you wanted me to join you.”

“Yes darling, come in and take a sit. Guilles brought some paperwork that I need to sign and some of Papa’s important documents.” My mother was telling me as she pointed to the chair on her right.

“Gilles, Mom, isn’t it too soon to be signing document.” I asked both of them.

“The documents your mother is signing pertain to the authorities, nothing that needs a decision; if that is what worries you.”

“I’m not worried, I know you have our best interest at hart.” I told him while I sat down next to Mom.

“Timothée, I got your note this morning and that’s what I wanted to discuss privately with you and your mother. I have already gone through some of the details with her. I truly understand your willingness to be in front of your family’s matters, but unfortunately that cannot happen now. You are still under the legal age and all legal and administrative matters need your mother’s signature until you are old enough.”

A bolt of rage went through my legs and my spine forcing me to stand up.

“What! That is preposterous, I’m the only Chalamet left and in the absence of my father it is my right and my duty to take care of my father’s businesses. I’m sure there is something you can do!”

I felt my mother’s hand make a tight grip around my wrist and she said. “Please sit down.”

“Timothée I understand your frustration, but the laws have changed. This does not mean you don’t get to make any decision; once you turn the legal age everything will be transferred to you. Your Papa was a very smart man and he made arrangements in case a situation like arose.”

I sat down and I looked at my mother. I wasn’t sure if I was frustrated with her, the country, the laws or whatever my father had left in writing and I didn’t know anything about.

“Mom, did you know about this?”

“Gilles can you leave us alone for a moment please, I’ll call you back when we are finished.”

“_Oui madame_.”

“Thank you, Gilles.”

Mom let go of my wrist and turned her chair to face me. As always, her stoic face disarmed me.

“Timmy, my angel, is this really the way you want to act just a few hours after the death of your father and your sister. You know I don’t care for what others think or say, but money and business are too superficial, there are more important things to worry about, you don’t want your focus to be this. Marc taught you so well my little baby, I know you understand your responsibilities and I’m so proud that you feel that they are not a burden. Believe me when I tell you, that you and only you, will be the one that will keep us safe. The time will come, it will be around the corner sooner than you expect.”

“How can you say that Mom? What did Papa leave? I want to read it, give it to me! I am sure I will understand, I’m old enough and more knowledgeable than anyone my age around here. Where is it?” I told here while shuffling the paper that Gilles laid out on the table.

“Sure sweetheart, it is this one. Read it, but what Gilles told you does not only contrive your father’s wishes but what is possible under the current legislation.”

Reading the document was an enormous mistake. It was my parents’ declaration of weariness in Paulie and I. They’ve always said how proud they were of us, of our objectivity, of our sense of responsibility; all of the compliments you give a reliable adult. We always thought we were so high in our parents’ steam. I was so happy and relieved that Paulie didn’t have to read this. In their eyes we were still kids that needed care and oversight. This hit me like an unexpected punch in the stomach, I was even out of breath. In the case something happened to him, Dad had placed all responsibility under Mom until both Paulie and I had reached the age majority.

I knew I was young and that growing up I was curious and got into trouble, but who didn’t. That didn’t matter to me, I was certain that it didn’t matter to Mom and Papa because they know that we are good and honest at heart. We did everything that was expected of us, we never disrespected our home, nor them; we were always at their side learning and taking as much as could without thinking of a way to bail out of our responsibilities.

After the Great war many children and teens practically lived alone in the streets everywhere in Europe. Children without fathers and with mothers forced to work. Many said this was progress, a way of women to provide, but no one said that those children were actually orphans raised by other children in the streets. We were lucky enough not to be one of them.

“Mom, excuse me I need some air.” I got up and left the room.

I was too dumbstruck to speak to anyone, I felt defeated and frustrated. As I was opening the door to step outside, I knew someone was following me. _I didn’t care to turn back_, but when I stood in front of the hedge behind the road, he touched my shoulder and spoke to me.

“_Bonjour Timothée._”

I turned around and said. “Hello uncle.”

He opened his arms and closed them behind me giving me a tight embrace. He smelled like cigarettes, brandy and leather.

“We have lost so much in a single day, haven’t we? I cannot understand how something like this happened. Marc deserved to watch you grow and proposer, and Paulie, oh Paulie, she should have never been ripped from us before her life started. I can’t begin to comprehend what you must be feeling right now. I feel so sad for you and Nicole, but you most know that I’m here for you boy, if you need anything, if you have questions, just call me or find me and I’ll be there to help you, we Chalamet men have to stick together.

He was such a rough man, bigger than Papa and the opposite of subtle, everything about him was blunt and unpolished, except for his words today. His words were soothing and reassuring, he talked to me like an equal, like I thought Papa would. I thought Papa trusted us, that he saw beyond our age, but clearly, I was wrong.

“Thank you, uncle. I’m really sorry for you as well. You just lost your brother and Paulie, I knew how much you loved them.” I wanted to thank him for his words but he’d be lost, he didn’t know what just transpired inside the hose with Mom and Gilles.

“I talked to Alain, your father and your sister were brought from Mars an hour ago, they will be released this evening. We can have the funerals tomorrow; everything has been arranged. Did you tell the everyone at the printing house, did you give them the day off?” He asked.

“Yes uncle, they’ll have tomorrow and the day after tomorrow off. Now I need to confirm the funerals and the burial, I’ll call them once I get back. Did you convey the news to the vineyard?

“I did nephew. By the way I was leaving when you left the house. I’ll go to the print house and tell them myself, don’t worry about that it is on my way home.”

“Thank you again uncle.”

I left and went back inside. This time I stopped and decided to greet everyone present, mostly relatives and close friends. I dreaded doing this, but I had no other choice. I had to be polite, endure whatever they felt they needed to do in order to feel less pity for me by telling me hallow words that I would forget in a second. The protocols of society in these circumstances weighed and dragged me down like an anchor. The only reward was that whatever I did today I did not have to do tomorrow, so I needed to take advantage of that.

Once I was done, I told them that I was going to retire to rest. There wasn’t much left for me to do. Alain didn’t need us to go to the mortuary because he brought Papa’s and Paulie’s salvageable belongings to us and Mom already signed the paperwork. The only thing I needed to do, was ask at what time I should be ready tomorrow.

On my way up to my room I found Mom by herself, standing in front of the staircase.

“Mom, I’m going to my room to rest, uncle and Alain told me that everything was taken care of. At what time do you need me to be ready?”

“I will see you for breakfast, same time as always.” Before she could open her mouth to say more, I shook my head acknowledging that I knew she wanted to tell me more, but that I wasn't going to listen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3 will be one of intrigue and disappointments, the last one before the big transformation and where we will hear from Armie for the first time ;).
> 
> Please let me know what you think!!!!


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